A Brush With Destiny
by Ghostwriter
Summary: HISB Changes may be in store for the Rangers.
1. Big News

A BRUSH WITH DESTINY

DISCLAIMER

Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. I only own the subplots.

It was late in the afternoon as Alpha worked in the Command Center. _Come on, come on, come on_, he thought to himself as he watched the Green and White Energies merge. _Please hold, please hold, please hold, please hold_, he silently pleaded. He tensed as the two energies crackled. Then, they melded together into Green and White stripes.

"YES! IT'S FINALLY HOLDING! HOORAY!" the robot exclaimed.

"Good work, Alpha. Now Tommy can use both energies to work as one," Zordon approved. Meanwhile, Jason, Bulk, and Skull entered the youth center and were met by Lt. Stone.

"Listen up you three. After you help set up tonight, your job will be to guard the paintings for the art gallery and make sure nobody steals them until the time you have to go to school and your relief guards come. Is that understood?" the man questioned.

"Yes, Sir," they all chorused.

"Good," Lt. Stone said. "Stand alert and remember: you're representing Angel Grove's finest," he continued.

"Yes, Sir. Thank you, Sir," Bulk replied, saluting the man. The man nodded and then walked off. The trio began helping other officers to set up.

"Man, this benefit is gonna be a blast," Jason said.

"I don't know. It's not really my kind of thing," Bulk answered. "Although, my dad will probably like it."

"Yeah, my mom likes certain paintings. Of course, she's more of a Van Gogh fan," Skull stated.

"I didn't know that," Jason commented.

"It's not something we brag about," Skull told him. Before Jason could respond, Tommy and Aisha walked up.

"Hey," Aisha said, playfully swatting Bulk's arm. He turned around and grinned.

"Hey," he greeted. "You're looking very nice," he continued, looking at her outfit, which was a purple shirt and black pants.

"Thanks," she grinned shyly.

"Do you guys need any help?" Tommy questioned.

"Nah, we got it, Bro. Thanks, anyway," Jason answered.

"Yeah, enjoy," Skull added.

"Thanks, but I'm kind of with you guys. It's not really my thing," Tommy replied. Richie, Angela, Curtis, Justin, Tina, Chris, Hilary, and Zane walked in.

"Wow. This art benefit is going to be really cool," Hilary stated.

"Yeah, I'll say," Tina agreed. Then, "Hey, there's Kim!"

"Kim!" Hilary called. Receiving no answer, they walked up to her.

"Kim?" Aisha asked.

"Anybody home?" Tommy asked, waving a hand in front of her face.

"Oh. Hey, guys. What's up?" she asked.

"You look really bummed out," her boyfriend noted. "You okay?"

"Well, I have good news, and I have bad news," she told them.

"Well, I always like the good news first," Aisha commented.

"My mom is engaged to be married to a French painter," Kimberly stated.

"Hey, that's awesome," Justin said.

"Yeah, I didn't even know she was seeing somebody new," Tommy added.

"Well, she had been keeping it low key in case it didn't work out…which obviously it **did**," Kimberly explained.

"Makes sense," mused Chris.

"Congratulations," everyone said.

"Thanks," Kimberly responded. "That's him over there showing his painting of an artist mole in the benefit," she continued, pointing him out.

"Ooh-la-la, he's kind of cute," Hilary stated.

"Yeah, he's really nice, too," Kimberly agreed as her voice became slightly sad. She turned and waved to the two, who waved back. "I like him a lot."

"So, what's the problem?" Richie wondered. The girl sighed deeply.

"Well, he lives in Paris," she answered and then turned back to her friends. "Mom says we're all moving there…for good," she continued. Everyone stared in surprise.

"M-moving?" Tommy repeated. _What? No! I can't lose her!_ he silently protested. Then, _Okay, calm down, Tommy. She doesn't need that kind of pressure on her_, he reminded himself.

"Hey, don't worry. We'll figure this out," Tommy assured. Bulk glanced over his shoulder.

"Hey, they all look upset," he noted. Confused, Skull and Jason followed his gaze.

"Yeah, they do," the Red Ranger noted. Concerned, the trio walked up to them.

"What's going on?" Jason asked and Kimberly once again explained what had taken place.

"Oh, man," he sighed, raking his hair with his fingers. _This isn't good. Kim's gotta be freaking out. And what about the Rangers?_ he wondered.

"You guys, how can I just leave?" she wondered. "I mean, it's not like I can just quit being a Power Ranger. I love it too much," she continued quietly. _I know what you mean_, Jason thought as he nodded. He loved being a Ranger too, but the Junior Police Patrol would take up a lot of his time and it wasn't fair to the others to have a leader who was only in a battle half way.

"Look, why don't we all just meet in the park tomorrow before school? I'm sure we can think of something," Aisha comforted.

"Okay, that sounds good," Kimberly agreed. "I-I better get back to them," she said.

"And we gotta continue-" Jason gestured towards the gallery.

"Gotcha," the others said. They all went their separate ways. Unknown to them, Zordon and Alpha had heard the whole thing over the viewing globe.

"Oh! Ai-yi-yi-yi! Poor Kimberly. Such a tough dilemma," Alpha exclaimed.

"Yes, but it's something that we can work around if she so desires," Zordon answered. A couple of hours later, Kimberly drove to her uncle's house and knocked on the door, which was soon opened.

"Kimberly, what is it?" Steven Hart asked. He hadn't seen her all that much these last two years, being busy with his flying business and her with her own life.

"Uncle Steve, can I talk to you?" she questioned.

"Of course," he answered, letting her in. They went to the family room and sat on the couch. "So, what's going on?"

"Well, you know that Mom and Andre got engaged, right?"

"Yes."

"Well, I'm really happy for her, but I don't know if I really want to move to France. I mean, all of my friends are here, my school's and-" she took a deep breath, stopping before she inadvertently said something about the Rangers.

"Have you told Caroline any of this?"

"No, absolutely not. Uncle Steve, I haven't seen her this happy since she and Dad got divorced, and I don't want to ruin things for her." He smiled fondly. That was Kimberly for you. Always putting others before herself.

"But she's not going to be happy if you're not."

"I know, but-I don't really have a good reason for not moving to Paris, and the last thing I want to do is sound like a spoiled brat."

"Kimberly, she would never think that…but I can understand where you're coming from." And he did. He remembered his niece confiding that she had felt like she had caused the divorce even though she knew that she hadn't, a fact that both her mother and father constantly reassured her of. He hugged the girl.

"You want to sleep here tonight?"

"You won't mind?"

"Of course not. I'm pretty sure you still have some pj's in a drawer in the guestroom."

"Thanks, Uncle Steve." She sighed and went to the guestroom, where she found a pair of pink pajamas, just as her uncle thought. She quickly changed and then slipped under the covers. She closed her eyes. _Kimberly walked through a vast space. __Where am I?__ she wondered._

"_Sure Mon Cherie, you will find that the French here is so much more-how do you say-complex," Andre said in his French accent._

"_Oh? How is that?" Carline asked. Andre laughed. _

"_I will show you!" he exclaimed and then turned into a mole dressed as an artist. Kimberly gasped and then lunged at it. there was no way she was going to let this goon hurt her mother! The mole just laughed and then pinned her to the ground._

"_You're going to love Paris, Kimberly!" the mole laughed._

"_No way! Forget it! I'm not going!" she responded. "And you're not going to hurt my mother! I won't let you!"_

"_And how are you going to stop him?" she heard herself ask. Surprised, she turned to see the Pink Ranger staring back at her._

"_Au revoir, Kimberly. Have a nice life," she smirked and then disappeared. _

"_Face it, my little Croissant. You're through," the artist mole laughed._ Kimberly moaned and clutched her pillow. On the moon, Finster rushed to Rita, nearly knocking Scorpina down.

"Hey, watch it, Finster!" she snapped.

"My apologies, Scorpina. I just have a wonderful gift for Empress Rita," he apologized.

"A gift for me?" Rita repeated. "What is it? What is it?" she asked.

"This device I've just created allows us to watch the dreams of Earthlings, such as the nightmare Kimberly's currently having. There's no sound, but from what I can gather, she's been told she has to leave Angel Grove," Finster answered. Rita made an interested noise when she saw the artist mole. "Awww…the poor puny, Pink Twerp. She doesn't want to leave home," she mocked.

"Finster, find a way to make that creature real," Zedd instructed. "We'll turn Kimberly's own dreams against her."

"Yes. I love it," Rita approved. They all laughed.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

I read in the episode guide on www . tv . com, that there was supposed to be a scene where Kimberly and her Uncle Steve had a heart-to-heart about the possibility of her moving to France but it got cut, so I thought I'd give it a shot.


	2. A Tough Dilemma

DISCLAIMER

Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. I only own the plot.

The next morning, Zack, Billy, Trini, Tommy, Rocky, Adam, Aisha, and Katherine all met at a table.

"Where's Jason and the others?" Katherine wondered.

"Well, Richie and the others said it sounded like it was just a Ranger thing and that they'd see us at school, and Jason's helping Bulk and Skull guard Kimberly's mom's fiancé's painting" Zack answered. Kimberly walked up to them.

"Hey, Kim," Katherine greeted.

"Hey," she acknowledged. _Wow. She looks really bad. She probably didn't sleep at all last night_, Adam thought to himself.

"It doesn't look like you slept too well," Tommy noted.

"I had nightmares all last night," Kimberly answered. "I'm so tired, I can't even think."

"Well, maybe we should tell Zordon about all this," Adam suggested.

"He probably already knows," Billy surmised.

"Yeah, I'm not sure how, but he **always** knows," Rocky commented with a small laugh.

"I wouldn't be surprised. But like I said last night, I can't just leave," Kimberly reminded.

"Have you talked to your mother about this?" Trini asked.

"No," Kimberly answered.

"What? Why not?" Aisha wondered.

"She's so happy right now, I don't want to spoil it for her," Kimberly answered. She sighed and put her hands on the table, let out a small sigh, and put her chin on her hands. On the moon, Rita laughed.

"That's right, Kimmie. Relax and leave the spoiling to **me**," she said.

"Empress Rita, I've done it! The machine is now able to turn dreams into reality!" Finster reported.

"Ah, excellent, Finster," Zedd approved. "Now, take my Putties and use them as a distraction while you extract Kimberly's dream monster from her subconscious." He laughed. Within moments, Finster and the 'Z' Putties were on Earth.

"Oh, great! From one nightmare to another!" Kimberly exclaimed, as everyone jumped up. They all spread out as the Putties attacked them. _These Putties look even uglier than usual_, Kimberly tiredly thought as she fought them. Usually, the Putties would be no match for the girl, but her exhaustion gave them an advantage. Two Putties grabbed Kimberly and held her against a tree. As she struggled to free herself, her communicator slipped off of her wrist, unnoticed.

"Now hold her steady. I wouldn't want to miss," Finster told them. He pointed the machine at her and fired. Kimberly let out a moan as the green energy enveloped her. Then, she felt something being pulled out of her. _Wha-what's going on?_ she wondered. Once the energy disappeared, Kimberly shook off the Putties and kicked them as Finster hurriedly teleported away. Moments later, all of the Putties had been destroyed and they all ran to Kimberly in concern.

"Are you all right?" Tommy asked in concern.

"I-I think so. But I think Finster pulled something out of me," Kimberly answered.

"What, you mean part of your chi?" Adam queried.

"No, I'm pretty sure it would've hurt a lot worse than the pain I felt," Kimberly answered.

"I guess the question then is: what did he take out of you?" Billy wondered.

"And what are Rita and Zedd up to?" Zack added.

"Yeah," the others agreed. At the youth center, Bulk and Skull had fallen asleep, while Jason was still awake. Bulk gasped.

"Skull! Why did you let me fall asleep?" he asked, nudging him. "We were supposed to stay alert," he added, as they both stood up.

"Well, I thought your snoring would scare off any burglars so I snoozed," Skull replied. "Besides, Jason's awake." Jason shook his head in amusement. Sometimes, he wasn't sure what to do with those two. Bulk looked around suspiciously.

"Wait a minute," he said. _Something's wrong here_, he thought. Both boys turned around. Then, they gasped.

"Skull! Wasn't there a painting there this morning?" Bulk asked, gesturing to the now empty easel.

"Uh, yeah," Skull replied. "But it was just that ugly mole picture. Good riddance if you ask me," he continued.

"Skull, if we don't find that painting, we're going to be doing pushups for the rest of our lives!" Bulk exclaimed. The two started to dash off, only to be stopped by Jason.

"Guys, relax. Andre Dumas, who owns the painting, came by and realized the frame was loose. He took it to fix it and he's going to return it before the show," he told them. The two boys sighed in relief. _I thought we were gonna be toast_, Bulk thought to himself. _Yeesh! How come people don't tell us these things when it's going down?_ Skull wondered. Then, three other officers came up.

"Okay, you can go now," one said, and Jason, Bulk, and Skull headed for school. At Angel Grove High, their friends except for Kimberly joined them.

"So Jason, have you talked to Zordon yet?" Aisha asked.

"Not yet," Jason answered.

"Talked to Zordon about what?" Angela wondered.

"About me quitting the Rangers and getting a new Red Ranger," Jason answered.

"What!" everyone exclaimed, barely remembering to keep their voices down. _I can't believe this! He's leaving us?_ Katherine wondered.

"Guys, it wouldn't be fair to you for me to go into battle when I'm only half focused," Jason pointed out.

"Are you sure this is the only way?" Tommy questioned.

"I don't see any other choice, Bro. I mean, you guys need a Red Ranger, and if I can't fulfill those duties anymore, the Power needs to be passed on," Jason said softly. _Man, I never thought I'd be leaving_, he thought to himself. He thought back to the day they had first been teleported to the Command Center. Man, it had interested him like nothing else had at the time. Just then, their communicators beeped, breaking his reverie. They all quickly went into an empty classroom.

"Zordon, what's going on?" Jason queried.

"Rangers, Rita and Zedd have sent forth a mole artist monster, but we have no clue where they got it from," Zordon answered.

"Where's the monster now?" Zack asked.

"It is downtown. You must go at once," Zordon answered. "Tommy, you can now combine your Dragon and Tigerzord energies into a Ranger that combines the two Powers," he continued.

"Morphinominal," Tommy said.

"It's morphin' time!" Jason shouted.

"Drago-Tigerzord!" As soon as he was morphed, Tommy couldn't resist looking at his suit which was now more like his Green Ranger costume, only with the green and white intermingled up to the gold bands that were on his Green Ranger uniform and the White Ranger's shield had mingled with the Green Ranger's shield. _Whoa, that's cool_, he thought.

"Raptor!"

"Drago!"

"Stega!"

"Brachio!"

"Mastodon!"

"Triceratops!"

"Saber-toothed Tiger!"

"Tyrannosaurus!" They had just teleported when Kimberly walked by.

"Guys?" she asked. She walked to the classroom and peered inside. Her brows furrowed in confusion when she didn't see them.

"Where is everybody?" she wondered out loud. _Maybe Zordon and Alpha will know_, she thought to herself. She went to touch the 'talk' button and-realized that her wrist was bare.

"Oh! I can't believe this! I lost my communicator!" she exclaimed softly. _Okay, all right. Don't panic. __**Don**__'__**t**__. I'll just retrace my steps_, she told herself. With that, she hurried out of the school. Downtown, the Rangers were battling Artisemole. The Gold and Yellow Rangers flipped through the air and went to kick the monster, who thrust his brush at them. As soon as the brush hit them, the Gold and Yellow Rangers were sucked onto the pallet.

"Trini! Rocky!" the other Rangers shouted. Artisemole laughed. The Blue and Brown Rangers tried their own attacks, only to meet with the same fate.

"Billy! Kat!"

"Ai-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi!"

"Alpha, have you reached Kimberly?"

"Ai-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi! For some reason, she's not answering her communicator!" The Red Ranger was the first to attempt another attack. To his surprise, he went right through the monster. _Whoa! That was weird_, he thought to himself. The other Rangers attempted the same thing, with the same results. The Red, Green and White, Black, Silver, and Purple Rangers backed up nervously.

"I think we're going to need some help here!" the Red Ranger exclaimed.


	3. Pink Fears

DISCLAIMER

Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. I only own the plot.

In the Command Center, Alpha watched the fight via the viewing globe.

"Ai-yi-yi-yi-yi! The Rangers are really taking a beating!" the robot exclaimed.

"Keep searching for Kimberly. They will need her help to defeat this creature," Zordon told him.

"I just don't understand why she's not answering, Zordon," Alpha said. _This isn't like her. maybe she's out of range. Perhaps if I increase the gauge on her communicator_, he thought to himself as he twisted a knob. In the park, Kimberly walked around, looking at the ground intently. _Okay, let's see. I remember I came here to meet the guys, and then Clod Squad appeared_, she thought. A six-tone beep reached her ears. With a relieved exclamation, she ran towards the sound and found her communicator at the base of a tree. She picked it up.

"Zordon, I read you," she assured. _Oh, this is so embarrassing_, she thought to herself. She couldn't believe that she had actually lost her Communicator.

"Kimberly, the other Rangers are fighting a monster downtown. Teleport to the Command Center immediately," Zordon instructed. The girl frowned in confusion.

"Um, Zordon, if the monster's downtown, shouldn't I go there?" Kimberly queried.

"No, Kimberly. We must converse before you go into battle," Zordon replied. Though confused, Kimberly teleported to the Command Center.

"Kimberly! You're all right!" Alpha exclaimed in relief.

"Kimberly, observe the viewing globe," Zordon told her. She did as instructed.

"You are no match for Artisemole!" the monster said in a French accent as he shot energy beams from his paint brush at the Rangers.

"That's the monster from my dream!" Kimberly gasped, pointing at the globe.

"From your dream? No wonder the other Rangers haven't been able to make an affect on it!" Alpha exclaimed. _If it's something that Kimberly conjured up, she'll be the only one that can defeat it_, he thought to himself. They watched in horror as the Black and Silver Rangers were hit and their images appeared on the pallet.

"Oh, they need my help," Kimberly said.

"If Artisemole has really been brought to life from your subconscious, you are the only one who can destroy it. And you can only do that once you face your fear," Zordon told her.

"Believe me, I am **not** afraid of that pathetic Picasso," Kimberly retorted.

"Yes, I know. I was referring to your anxiety over the possibility of moving far away," Zordon replied. She turned to look at him.

"Wow," Kimberly said softly. "I guess I **am** afraid of leaving the Power Rangers and Angel Grove," she said quietly.

"Ai-yi-yi-y-yi-yi! Kimberly, why do you think that if you move away, you can no longer be a Power Ranger?" Alpha wondered.

"Because when I'm in France, I won't be in close range anymore. And it's not exactly conducive to keeping a secret identity," Kimberly answered. "And you guys won't have to worry abut a candidate. I'll make sure that my replacement is someone we trust, but I have to be honest: I'm really going to miss this. You guys have been like a family to me, and I don't know what I'm going to do without you all," she continued. "Especially **you**, Zordon. I mean, ever since you came into my life, you've been like a father to me." She bit her lip, trying to keep down the lump in her throat.

"Kimberly, if you moved, I would not ask you for your Power Coin. You are a valuable member of this team, and that wouldn't diminish if you moved out of Angel Grove," he stated.

"Really?"

"The Pink Power is yours for as long as you want and need it."

"Wow. Now I feel kind of silly."

"There is no reason to. Kimberly, we all tend to fear the unknown. You must trust that your mother has only your best interests at heart," her mentor assured her.

"I guess you're right. I mean, Mom would never let anything bad happen to me," she realized. "Thanks, Zordon."

"Ai-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi. These tender moments always overload my circuits." Kimberly gave a small laugh.

"Now you're ready to face Artisemole. Sensors have indicated that if you destroy the Pallet with your Power Bow, you can rescue your friends," Zordon said. "May the Power protect you."

"It's morphin' time! Pterodactyl!" The Pink Ranger flipped through the air, distracting the Artisemole, giving the Red and Purple Rangers the chance to dodge his attack.

"KIM! Am I glad to see **you**!" the Red Ranger shouted.

"You guys okay?" the Pink Ranger questioned.

"We're fine. But Artisemole's trapped the others," the Purple Ranger answered.

"Yeah, I know," the Pink Ranger said. Then, she pulled out her Power Bow.

"You think that puny little bow can destroy me?" Artisemole sneered. For an answer, the Pink Ranger aimed and fired. The monster yelled in surprise as the arrow hit his pallet and then broke apart, freeing the other Rangers.

"Oh, finally," the Gold Ranger sighed.

"What a relief," the Brown Ranger added in the same breath.

"This isn't over yet, Kimmie!" Rita snarled. She and Zedd placed their staffs together.

"By the Power and Force of Lightning, make our monster grow!" they chorused. Artisemole roared as it grew.

"Aw, man. Not good," the Green and White Ranger stated.


	4. Solutions

DISCLAIMER

Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. I only own the plot.

"I call on the Power of Thunder!" the Red Ranger shouted.

"Drago-Tigerzord!"

"Raptor Thunderzord Power!"

"Mastodon-Lion Thunderzord Power!"

"Pterodactyl-Firebird Thunderzord Power!"

"Drago Thunderzord Power!"

"Stega Thunderzord Power!"

"Brachio Thunderzord Power!"

"Triceratops-Unicorn Thunderzord Power!"

"Saber-toothed Tiger-Griffin Thunderzord Power!"

"Tyrannosaurus-Red Dragon Thunderzord Power!" The zords came and the Rangers jumped into them. The Green and White Ranger was pleased to realize that the combination of the Dragon and Tiger zords gave him a large amount of space and came equipped with weapons from both zords. Artisemole roared and attacked the Saber-toothed Tiger-Griffin Thunderzord only to be grabbed by the Triceratops-Unicorn Thunderzord, giving the Pterodactyl-Firebird Thunderzord a chance to fire upon it. Artisemole roared again and lashed out at the zords.

"Convert to Thundermegazord!" Instantly, the zords did so.

"So, you think that will stop me?" Artisemole sneered. _Man, he talks a lot_, the Red Ranger thought to himself. The monster attacked, blasting both zords.

"We need Titanus and the Thunder-Ultrazord, now!" There was a roar and the silver zord came from its hiding place and linked up with the zords.

"Welcome back, old friend," the Red Ranger greeted fondly.

"Oh, no! They brought out Titanus!" Rita exclaimed.

"Don't worry, my Prickly Pear. Not even Titanus can beat something that was created out of one of the Ranger's minds," Zedd told her. After all, it was just a tin zord and this monster was from the Pink Ranger's mind. Therefore, it would crush the Rangers easily. Titanus roared and fired on Artisemole, who shouted and then fell to the ground and exploded. Zedd roared and turned to his minions, blasting energy from his staff at them.

"YOU BUMBLING FOOLS! YOU FAILED!"

"Master, forgive us. It is us, not your plans," Goldar said, remembering to put a groveling tone in his voice. Zedd humphed and walked away. Then, Rita and her minions shared devilish grins. Things were going swimmingly. In the Command Center, the Rangers chattered excitedly.

"Congratulations, Rangers. You all did an excellent job. Especially you, Kimberly," Zordon said.

"Thanks, Zordon," Kimberly smiled.

"Yeah, it was great while it lasted," Jason stated.

"Jason, no!" the others protested.

"Guys, I told you: the Junior Police Patrol is going to be taking up a lot of my time and it wouldn't be fair to you for me to continue as a Ranger when I'm not completely focused," Jason reminded.

"Jason, do you honestly believe that you will not be able to perform both of your duties to the best of your abilities if you continue on as the Red Ranger?" Zordon queried.

"I don't know, Zordon. But right now, I'm having to bail on Bulk and Skull in order to go to battles which isn't fair to them, and I can't tell Lt. Stone that I'm the Red Ranger," Jason answered. Zordon frowned thoughtfully. The Red Ranger had a point. Both duties were of equal importance to him. This appeared to be something similar to what some of the Rangers of the past had faced. Nodding, he made a decision.

"Red Ranger, when I first gave you and your team the three rules of being a Power Ranger, they were necessary for your survival and the safety of the planet. While that hasn't changed as a whole, for you, circumstances have. In the previous centuries when there have been Rangers with a civilian job, they were allowed to reveal their identity to a trusted employer if they felt that it was necessary. If you feel that you can trust your commanding officer, I give you my blessing to reveal your identity to him," he said.

"Thank you, Zordon," came the response. They teleported back to the youth center. Caroline Hart and Andre walked up to Bulk, Skull, and the three other officers.

"I want to thank you all for guarding my painting so thoroughly," Andre told them.

"Hey, it was our pleasure," Bulk answered. "And may I add that you look lovely, Mrs. Hart."

"Well, thank you." Kimberly ran up to her mother.

"Mom, I need to talk to you," she said.

"Sure, Sweetie. What about?" Caroline asked. _She seems so upset. I hope everything's okay_, she thought to herself. _Mon dieu. I hope everything is all right_, Andre thought to himself.

"I love you very much, and I'm **very** excited about everything that's happening, but I just want you to know that I'm a little worried about losing my friends and changing schools, and learning a new language and-"

"Honey, honey, slow down," the woman interrupted. "Why didn't you say something about this?" _She knows she can talk to me. Why did she wait so long to say anything?_ she wondered. _What? Why did she not tell us sooner? We could've all sat down and talked about this_, Andre thought to himself.

"Because I didn't want to ruin everything." Mrs. Hart looked at her daughter in confusion.

"Ruin everything?"

"Yeah, I mean, I know how hard it was for you after the divorce, and that some of the guys you dated didn't work out, either because they weren't ready to commit, or they didn't want to date someone with a teenage daughter. And then Andre came along and you were happy again. And I want you to be happy." Caroline pulled Kimberly into a hug.

"Oh, my sweet girl," she murmured. She remembered how some of her boyfriends had hurt Kimberly's feelings because they ran the other way when they met her, but she had finally found the one that she could spend the rest of her life with. Andre felt his heart lurch. To think, a man would break Caroline and Kimberly's hearts by deserting them because they did not want Kimberly in their lives. Then and there, he vowed that he would do everything in his power not to hurt either of the girls.

"But I also want you to know that I understand that you would never do anything unless it was okay," the girl continued, pulling away to look at her mother.

"Of course things are going to be okay," the woman replied. "As long as we're honest with one another, they have to be."

"Kim?" Kimberly turned around to see Trini and her parents, Ioki and May Ling.

"Kimberly, Trini has told us about your situation," Mrs. Kwan said.

"I believe we have a solution to your dilemma," Mr. Kwan added.

"You do?" Kimberly asked.

"Kim, would you like to stay with us for the rest of the school year?" Trini queried. Kimberly tried to say something, but couldn't. Overwhelmed, she turned to her mother.

"What do you think?" she asked. _I really want to do this, but only if it's okay with her_, she thought to herself.

"Oh, I don't know. It's quite an imposition on the Kwans," her mother hesitated.

"Believe me, it's no imposition. The girls have been best friends for years. It's the perfect solution," Mr. Kwan answered.

"Is that what you want, Kimberly?" Mrs. Hart checked.

"Yes! Yes! I can finish up the school year, and then come to France," Kimberly stated excitedly.

"That **does** make sense. And it would be better for you to finish your school year here," Mrs. Hart agreed.

"And then anytime you are ready, our home is your home," Andre told her. He had always wanted a daughter, and now thanks to Caroline, he was getting one. She hugged them both and then turned back to Trini.

"Trini, are you sure this is okay?" she checked.

"Oh, we can't wait," Mrs. Kwan assured.

"You have always been a part of this family, Kimberly," Mr. Kwan added.

"And hey, we always said we were sisters, right?" Trini reminded. Kimberly squealed and they hugged each other.

"Come on, we gotta tell the guys," Kimberly said, and they ran to their friends.

"So, what's up?" Jason asked.

"I'm going to be staying with Trini for the rest of the school year, and then I'll join Mom and Andre in France," Kimberly answered.

"Hey, that's awesome!" Zack exclaimed and he and the others hugged her.

"Well, I still have you for a little while," Tommy stated optimistically.

"Tommy, you'll never lose me…even if I end up in some weird alternate universe," Kimberly answered. They laughed as Bulk and Skull came up as Richie, Angela, Curtis, Justin, Hilary, Chris, Tina, and Zane walked in.

"What's going on?" Justin asked.

"Kim's staying for the rest of the school year, and then joining her mom in France," Rocky answered.

"All right!" they all cheered. The guys high-fived each other.

"What about you, Jase?" Bulk asked. Everyone fell silent and looked to him, waiting for his answer.

"Zordon said that in previous centuries, Rangers who were employed were allowed to tell a trusted boss of their identities, and said that if I trusted Lt. Stone, I had his blessing to reveal my identity to him," Jason answered.

"So, are you going to do it?" Justin queried. Jason thought for a minute.

"Yeah, I think I am," he finally replied.

"Yes!" This time, everyone high-fived. Kimberly and Jason shared relieved smiles.

"Looks like things won't have to change after all," Kimberly stated.

"At least…not much," Jason agreed. They laughed.

THE END


End file.
